Lasers have been used in, for example, urology, neurology, otorhinolaryngology, general anesthetic ophthalmology, dentistry, gastroenterology, cardiology, gynecology, thoracic, and orthopedic procedures. One example of a procedure that may be performed using a laser is lithotripsy. Lithotripsy involves treating a subject's kidneys, ureters, or bladder by removing material therein, such as calculi or stones. Laser lithotripsy is a subset of lithotripsy where laser energy is applied to break down targeted material, thereby facilitating removal of the material. In one exemplary laser lithotripsy procedure, an optical fiber may be inserted through a working channel of an insertion device, such as an endoscope or a ureteroscope, and adjacent to the targeted material. The optical fiber may transmit laser energy to the targeted material to break down the targeted material into pieces. The pieces may then be washed out of, or otherwise removed from, the subject.
However, often in laser lithotripsy, the size of the optical fiber in the laser delivery device limits the power of the laser that can be delivered to the targeted material, thus limiting the ability to break down the material. A powerful laser emits higher order laser energy that may escape an optical fiber and be absorbed by components in a handle of the laser delivery device, heating those components to unsafe temperatures and posing a risk to a user. A powerful laser may also overheat the optical fiber, which may break the optical fiber or burn a subject.
The devices and methods of the current disclosure may rectify some of the deficiencies described above, or address other aspects of the prior art.